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Balancing Social and Cultural Priorities in the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for UNESCO World Heritage Cities

Author

Listed:
  • Bayan F. El Faouri

    (Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University, Bute Building, King Edward VII Ave., Cardiff CF10 3NB, UK)

  • Magda Sibley

    (Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University, Bute Building, King Edward VII Ave., Cardiff CF10 3NB, UK)

Abstract

There is a strong relationship between heritage-led urban regeneration and the UN initiatives for Sustainable Development (SD). These include the Intangible Cultural Heritage Convention (ICH; 2003) and Historic Urban Landscape (HUL; 2011) under the UNESCO mandate and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs; 2015) and the New Urban Agenda (NUA; 2016) under the UN mandate. Despite the presence of those initiatives, regeneration in a World Heritage city often leads to the disappearance of intangible heritage, gentrification, excessive tourism, and social exclusion. Therefore, this paper critically identifies the shortcomings of those initiatives in addressing social and cultural sustainability. It uses the recently inscribed city of As-Salt on the WHL to showcase how the relevant SDGs’ targets and indicators are problematic in monitoring and measuring the sustainability of urban regeneration practices in WH cities. This is achieved by investigating where heritage and culture are embedded within the descriptions of goals and indicators in the three initiatives (SDGs, NUA, and HUL) document. A content analysis, using the NVivo qualitative data analysis tool, was conducted in order to identify complementarity, synergies, and correlations among the goals and indicators related to social and cultural sustainability. This paper concludes by suggesting an integrated approach under the umbrella of the SDGs for a more sustainable heritage-led urban regeneration alternative for cities acquiring UNESCO WH status.

Suggested Citation

  • Bayan F. El Faouri & Magda Sibley, 2024. "Balancing Social and Cultural Priorities in the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for UNESCO World Heritage Cities," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(14), pages 1-23, July.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:16:y:2024:i:14:p:5833-:d:1431485
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Kagan Dogruyol & Zeeshan Aziz & Yusuf Arayici, 2018. "Eye of Sustainable Planning: A Conceptual Heritage-Led Urban Regeneration Planning Framework," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-22, April.
    2. Libertad Moreno-Luna & Rafael Robina-Ramírez & Marcelo Sánchez-Oro Sánchez & José Castro-Serrano, 2021. "Tourism and Sustainability in Times of COVID-19: The Case of Spain," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(4), pages 1-21, February.
    3. Labadi, Sophia, 2022. "Rethinking Heritage for Sustainable Development," University of Chicago Press Economics Books, University of Chicago Press, number 9781800081949, December.
    4. Lasse Steiner & Bruno S. Frey, 2011. "Imbalance of World Heritage List: did the UNESCO strategy work?," ECON - Working Papers 014, Department of Economics - University of Zurich.
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